If you are a nurse practicing in the Greater Tulsa, Oklahoma area, you know how important your nursing license is to your ability to make a living. You’ve worked hard to earn it and maintain it, and that license is the key to your career. That is why allegations that you have committed domestic abuse can be so devastating. In addition to the personal harm that they may inflict, these kinds of allegations can end up affecting your nursing license depending on whether they are substantiated or not.
That is why you need the help of one of the experienced attorneys from the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team if you have been accused of domestic abuse, or if an Oklahoma court issues a protective order against you. Whether or not any criminal allegations follow, you may be investigated by the Oklahoma Board of Nursing, and that could lead to problems with your license. If you find yourself accused of domestic abuse or are the target of a proposed or issued protective order, contact us so we can review your situation and let you know how we will be able to help. You can reach the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team at 888.535.3686, or by filling out and submitting our online contact form.
Oklahoma’s Domestic Abuse Laws
Whether you are a nurse working in Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Owasso, Muskogee, or another nearby city, Oklahoma’s domestic abuse laws apply to you. The legal concept of domestic abuse in Oklahoma includes not only actual harm but also threats of “imminent” harm made by one person against another person when those two people have a certain type of relationship.
The kind of situation that is important in domestic abuse cases is when the abuse is committed by one “family or household member” against another. That term – family or household member – has a specific meaning in Oklahoma. It covers:
- Parents, grandparents, stepparents, adoptive parents, and foster parents
- Children, grandchildren, stepchildren, adopted children, and foster children
- Anyone living in the same household who is related by blood or by marriage
- Anyone “otherwise related by blood or marriage”
- Anyone living together in the same household, even if they’re not related, or who has lived together within the past year
This broad definition is designed to include many different types of living situations, from a traditional married couple with one or more children from that marriage, to a home that is occupied by multiple roommates who have no other ties to each other except for living together.
Where domestic abuse includes actual physical contact, the defendant will typically be prosecuted for assault and battery, with more severe penalties in cases where there has been a pattern of abuse or assault. And in addition to possible criminal penalties, allegations of domestic abuse will very often be accompanied by a petition for a protective order.
Oklahoma Protective Orders
Anybody who alleges that they are a victim of domestic abuse (actual or threatened) can petition a court to issue a protective order against the alleged abuser. Protective orders can also be issued in cases of harassment and stalking.
It’s important to understand that these types of protective orders are not issued by criminal courts in Oklahoma – the petitions are filed with the local district court as a civil action. A petition can be filed in the county where the victim lives, where the defendant lives, or where the domestic violence allegedly took place. In the greater Tulsa area, there are district courthouses in Tulsa itself as well as in Bartlesville and Muskogee.
It can be very challenging to try to argue that a protective order should not issue against you. Judges will often focus on the allegations and may issue a protective order on a temporary basis even before you have had a chance to contest the petition. They do this out of an abundance of caution, even though having a protective order issued against you can almost immediately turn your life upside down. You may be prohibited from contacting the petitioner, and along with that, may be forced to leave your home if you share living space with them.
When a temporary protective order is issued, there will be a hearing scheduled, typically within 14 days. At that hearing, you will have a chance to argue against the order. If a permanent order is issued, it can last for up to 5 years, and after that, the petitioner can ask for the order to be renewed.
What is the Effect of a Protective Order On Your Oklahoma Nursing License
In order to secure a protective order from a court in Oklahoma, the petitioner needs to allege that the person whom the order targets has committed or has threatened to commit some kind of violent act, or that the person has harassed or stalked the petitioner. When the target of the protective order is a nurse, these are all types of behavior that, if proven, could cause the Oklahoma Board of Nursing to question the nurse’s professional integrity.
Because the Board’s focus is on the well-being of the general public, it will be very concerned that a nurse who has been accused of violent or threatening conduct in any context could end up harming a patient or a member of a patient’s family. Many health care situations involve a lot of stress, with patients being concerned for their own well-being, and family members sharing and often amplifying those concerns. The Board will be justifiably concerned that a nurse who is in that type of stressful situation could act in an inappropriate or unsafe way in response to that stress.
Of course, any conviction for a domestic violence offense can result in the Board of Nursing taking action against you. A felony conviction can result in you losing your license altogether. But even an arrest with no conviction or a petition filed by someone for a protective order against you can lead to you facing a disciplinary investigation and potential sanctions. That is because even in cases where you are not convicted of a crime, anyone is free to file a complaint against you with the Oklahoma Board of Nursing.
Disclosing Protective Orders to the Board of Nursing
If you’re a nurse working in the greater Tulsa area and a protective order is issued against you because of a petition that someone else has filed, you do not need to report that to the Board of Nursing. There is no current requirement in Oklahoma for nurses to report protective orders in these circumstances.
This makes some sense because, as noted above, courts will often bend over backwards to ensure the safety of a petitioner who requests a protective order, and may issue a temporary order without any hearing, based solely on what is in the petition. Even in cases where there is a hearing, the person whom the protective order petition targets may choose not to defend themselves and may simply do nothing and allow the protective order to issue. While this may seem easier, it’s often not a sensible strategy. That’s because in many cases, protective orders can be significantly modified or even lifted if there is evidence showing that the requested order is too broad or is not needed at all.
But unless you have been convicted of a felony that is related to a protective order that issues from a court, there is no need to disclose to the Oklahoma Board of Nursing that there is a protective order that has been issued against you.
Disclosing Domestic Violence Arrests to the Board of Nursing
Just as you do not need to tell the Board of Nursing that a protective order has been issued against you, it is also not necessary to tell the Board if you have been arrested on a domestic violence-related charge, such as assault and battery, stalking, or harassment. Charges are not convictions, and you are only required to disclose criminal convictions to the Board.
Disclosing Criminal Convictions to the Board of Nursing
You are required to disclose all past criminal convictions (except for juvenile convictions and expunged convictions) to the Oklahoma Board of Nursing when you apply for your nursing license. If you are convicted of any crime after your nursing license is issued, you must disclose the conviction when you renew it.
Self-Reporting Protective Orders to the Board of Nursing
Because anybody can file a complaint with the Oklahoma Board of Nursing against any licensed nurse, it may make sense in some cases to report yourself to the Board if a protective order is issued against you. You may want to do this if you are involved in an extremely bitter divorce or custody dispute, one where you believe the other party involved (or one of their family members) may choose to file a complaint with the Board of Nursing for personal reasons.
This is not a decision to take lightly. You will benefit from the advice of one of the experienced Tulsa-area nurse domestic violence defense attorneys from the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team. We have helped many nurses in similar situations, and can use our experience to help you decide whether it makes strategic sense in your case to notify the Board of Nursing about the protective order that has been issued against you.
The main benefit of self-reporting a protective order to the Board is that it allows you to have more control over the information the Board initially has about the protective order. Working with one of our experienced attorneys means that you can gather all of the information the Board needs to understand why the protective order was issued against you and what your defenses are to the allegations made in the petition. By submitting all of that to the Board, it can result in a significantly shortened investigation and, in some cases, an early decision by the Board not to pursue sanctions against you.
Potential Consequences of the Board of Nursing Discipline
The disciplinary process for nurses in Oklahoma – including, of course, nurses in greater Tulsa – typically includes an investigation phase and, for cases that the Board believes warrant sanctions, formal hearings. There are various points during the process when it may be possible to negotiate a resolution, and as a practical matter, most nurse disciplinary cases that are not dismissed will be resolved with an agreement.
In cases where the Board finds that your actions violated any of the standards that it expects nurses to uphold, you can expect to face sanctions. These can include:
- Reprimands. A written description of the circumstances of your misconduct and a warning against future misconduct that becomes part of your professional record.
- Remedial Requirements. These can include requiring the nurse to complete certain educational programs as well as a course of counseling, anger management, or other therapeutic steps.
- Probation. A period of time when the nurse is placed under certain restrictions, typically with greater supervision.
- Suspension. The nurse may not practice until the suspension is lifted, which typically will happen after the nurse completes certain conditions (such as remedial requirements).
- Revocation. The permanent loss of the nursing license.
The LLF National Law Firm Can Help You Defend Your Nursing License
If you are a practicing nurse in greater Tulsa, whether you work in Tulsa itself or in a nearby city such as Claremore, Bixby, or Bartlesville, if someone has asked a court to issue a protective order against you, you need to consider how that may affect your nursing license. This is even more important if you are also arrested based on allegations that you committed domestic abuse. In these kinds of situations, you need an experienced professional license defense attorney by your side, even if you have also retained a criminal law attorney to defend you against any charges you’re facing.
The attorneys from the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team are here to help you protect your Oklahoma nursing license. We also understand that in cases where domestic abuse is alleged, you may also be facing criminal charges. We know how important it is that the defense in your criminal case is coordinated with the defense of your nursing license. We are here to work with your criminal law attorney to make sure you are properly protected and defended in both cases.
Your nursing license is vital to your career and your livelihood. When it is threatened because of misconduct allegations, the LLF National Law Firm’s Professional License Defense Team is here to help you protect it. Call us at 888.535.3686, or fill out our online contact form so that we can set up a confidential consultation to go over your situation, and let you know how we are ready to help.